
Striker Karim Bellarabi will not be able to train with the squad for several days. The forward had to go off in Tuesday night's DFB Cup semi-final at Saarbrücken (3-0) due to a slight muscle injury in his right thigh. When the 30-year-old will be able to rejoin his teammates on the pitch depends on his recovery over the next few days.
Thanks to his impressive performances, Kai Havertz is in the running to be the EA SPORTS Player of the Month for May. The 21-year-old has scored five goals in four league matches since the Bundesliga restart and has three times led the Werkself onto the pitch as captain. Click HERE to vote.
The following Bundesliga players are also nominated in addition to Havertz: Achraf Hakimi (Borussia Dortmund), Christoph Baumgartner (TSG 1899 Hoffenheim), Timo Werner (RB Leipzig) plus Joshua Kimmich and Benjamin Pavard (both FC Bayern).
Thanks to the 3-0 win in the semi-finals, the Black and Reds are through to the fourth DFB Cup final in the club's history. Back in 1993, the Werkself showed how to win that game and go on to lift the cup. Bayer 04 TV looks back at the highlights of the cup triumph against the Hertha Berlin Reserves 27 years ago today. Click HERE for the video.
Two former Bayer 04 players celebrate their birthday today: Eren Derdiyok played up front for the Werkself from 2009 to 2012 and in the 2013/14 season. The 32-year-old scored 26 goals for the Black and Reds in 108 Bundesliga appearances. Derdiyok is now playing for Pakhtakor Tashkent in Uzbekistan. And birthday greetings also go to Markus Anfang today. Born in Cologne, he played for the Bayer 04 youth teams and was youth coach at Leverkusen from 2013 to 2016. Anfang celebrates his 46th birthday today. Many happy returns, Eren and Markus.

From special edition jerseys to fan banners, the home game against Mainz 05 was all about the many Bayer 04 fan clubs. Accordingly, a fitting tribute to the long-standing Werkself supporters was not to be missed during half-time in the Bundesliga match. Fernando Carro, CEO, honoured the up to 50-year anniversaries of six fan clubs in front of the coaches' benches at the BayArena.
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There’s lots going on at the BayArena today. The home game against FSV Mainz 05 is all about the numerous Bayer 04 fan clubs, whose birth - the founding of the "1. Fanclub 1976 Leverkusen" - dates back 50 years. A number of fan club representatives will be involved in awards, a banner display and a half-time matchday chat, and the Werkself are set to play in a special white fan club jersey. During half-time, Leverkusen mayor Stefan Hebbel and javelin world champion Steffi Nerius will also talk about the Olympic bid involving Leverkusen. Black and Red fans are advised to get to the stadium in good time today. Matchday news.
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The Werkself host Premier League club Arsenal in the Round of 16 first leg in the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League campaign. The match at the BayArena is on 10/11 March. Read on for information on ticket sales for this fixture.
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The draw for the Round of 16 in the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 was made today, Friday 27 February: Bayer 04 face Premier League leaders Arsenal. Managing director sport Simon Rolfes sees the English team as a "top opponent" and is looking forward to meeting former Werkself players Kai Havertz and Piero Hincapie again.
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The Werkself are now unbeaten in five home games and without conceding a goal. Ahead of the game at the sold-out BayArena against Mainz 05 on Saturday, 28 February (kick-off: 15:30 CET), head coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke about the importance of the coming week, his team's past performances and provided squad updates.
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